by Pete Warner, Special for USA TODAY Sports

by Pete Warner, Special for USA TODAY Sports

ORNO, Maine -- Jovan Belcher earned a degree in child development and family relations from the University of Maine in just 3 ½ years and, while at the school, the football star was a member of Male Athletes Against Violence initiative, one former teammate said.

As part of MAAV, Belcher would have signed a pledge card, vowing never to commit violence against women and to stand up against those who did. The pledge, among other things, required him to "look honestly at my actions in regards to violence and make changes, if necessary."

On Saturday, according to police, Belcher shot and killed Kasandra Perkins, the mother of their infant child, at a home he leased for them in Kansas City. Police said Belcher then drove to the Kansas City Chiefs' facility and committed suicide in front of his coach and general manager.

The shocking developments have left his former college coach and two teammates teammates baffled.

"This is a real tragedy, a horrible tragedy," said Maine football head coach Jack Cosgrove. "Jovan was was one of those young men that we have such great memories of here.

"His impact on this program was boundless. His teammates and the young men who don't even know him, their stomachs and hearts ache today. It's a real difficult time for me personally and through our football family."

Former Maine teammate Mike Brusko of Emmaus, Pa., who was a member of Male Athletes Against Violence with Belcher, couldn't fathom such a scenario involving his friend.

"Right now, the immediate reaction is disbelief. It's something that you could never imagine," said Brusko, who played with Belcher at Maine from 2005-2008. "I am incredibly thankful for the memories of him that I have and the person that I got to know. It's just beyond comprehension and explanation right now."

Brusko repeatedly became choked up as he talked about Belcher and how much he came to love and respect him as a friend and teammate.

"On and off the field, he had a big heart and was full of love for a lot of people," Brusko said. "He played the game the way that it was meant to be played."

In St. Louis, similar sentiments were expressed by Rams tight end Matt Mulligan. The native of Enfield, Maine, also played four seasons with Belcher at Maine. He got the word prior to St. Louis' team meeting on Saturday morning.

"Gut-wrenching," was how Mulligan described hearing the news. "I was shocked, in a state of disbelief. It was just horrific."

Mulligan said he last spoke to Belcher after the Rams played an exhibition game at Kansas City in August.

"We reminisced about things and I asked him how everything was going, simple stuff that you talk to a guy about after a game," Mulligan said.

He explained the men talked about Belcher making a trip to Maine for a visit during the offseason.

"You always wonder, what could I have done, what should I have seen, is there anything I should have picked up on as a human being to say: I should talk to him or see if he needs anybody to talk to," Mulligan said.

While at Maine, Mulligan marveled at the defensive end's hard-hitting style and the way he carried himself off the field.

"Jovan's demeanor and his personality was one that anybody could be attracted to," he said. "You wanted to be friends with him, be around him."

Both men had a hard time believing the young man they knew and played with could have committed such an act.

"It just makes you look at life and realize how special and how delicate it really is, because it can be gone in a moment," said Mulligan, who said his faith in God is critical at such a time.

Brusko, who described Belcher as passionate and caring, wants people to know the positive impact he had on others.

"That's who he was and always will be to me, not this person that he was on his last day," said Brusko, who wondered aloud whether Belcher's behavior might have been related to traumatic head injuries players sustain playing football.

"It's a tragedy and we can't deny that, we can't avoid that," he added. "Something caused him to do a very bad thing."

Judging from his final Facebook post, which came on Thursday, Belcher appeared to be in good spirits less than 48 hours before the apparent murder-suicide.